Burnt Offerings (1976)

A family moves into an old, haunted house that regenerates itself by feeding off of the life forces of its injured occupants.

Director:

Dan Curtis

Writers:

Robert Marasco (novel), William F. Nolan (screenplay)

Stars:

Karen Black, Oliver Reed, Burgess Meredith

6 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Karen Black	...	Marian Rolf
Oliver Reed	...	Ben Rolf
Burgess Meredith	...	Arnold Allardyce
Eileen Heckart	...	Roz Allardyce
Lee Montgomery	...	David Rolf (as Lee H. Montgomery)
Dub Taylor	...	Walker
Bette Davis	...	Aunt Elizabeth
Joseph Riley	...	Ben's Father
Todd Turquand	...	Young Ben
Orin Cannon	...	Minister
Jim Myers	...	Dr. Ross
Anthony James	...	The Chauffeur

Storyline

Ben and Marian Rolf rent a grand old country mansion as a summer getaway for themselves, their twelve year old son Davey, and Ben's Aunt Elizabeth. They feel they can't turn down the rent deal offered to them by the house's owners, siblings Roz and Arnold Allardyce, despite some reservations. First amongst those reservations, they are to take care of the house on their own, which Ben feels is too big a job, especially for Marian and the interior housekeeping. In Marian's words, the large size of the house is a "waste". And second and perhaps more important amongst those reservations, the Allardyces' aged mother will be staying in her room at the house, the Rolfs who are to provide a tray of food left outside her room three times a day, which Marian vows to take care of on her own, with no other members of the family to go into that isolated wing of the house so as not to disturb Mrs. Allardyce's peace. Upon their arrival at the house for the first day of their stay, they find a note ...

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Plot Keywords:

possession | obsession | summer vacation | old house | house | 

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Taglines:

Up the ancient stairs, behind the locked door, something lives, something evil, from which no one has ever returned. [UK]

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA Italy

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 October 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pesadilla diabólica

Filming Locations:

Dunsmuir House & Gardens - 2960 Peralta Oaks Court, Oakland, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Produzioni Europee Associate (PEA), Dan Curtis Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the commentary with director Dan Curtis, he says that he actually read the novel 'Burnt Offerings' years before he got the offer to direct this film. Curtis said that he hated the open-ended conclusion of the novel and, at the time, thought to himself that he would pity anyone who would attempt to make it into a movie. Ironically, years later, the offer to direct the movie version of the novel came to him, and the first thing he did was write an ending that he liked - the one featured in the film.

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Goofs

At the end of the film, when the chimney collapses, you can clearly see the cables on either side pulling the bricks down.

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Quotes

Marian Rolf: Alright, you didn't lock it. It locked itself! Now what about the windows?
Aunt Elizabeth: Well, they were open.
Marian Rolf: They were closed when Ben went into that room. Now make sense, Elizabeth!
Aunt Elizabeth: Well, how can I when you keep shouting at me and accusing me of...
Marian Rolf: I'm not accusing you.
Aunt Elizabeth: Where's Ben? Benji will believe me.
Marian Rolf: I believe you, too.
Aunt Elizabeth: No, you don't. It's obvious.
Marian Rolf: We all forget things, Elizabeth. And at your age...
Aunt Elizabeth: I don't forget things! I know what I do.
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in NCIS: Los Angeles: Impact (2013)

User Reviews

An ordinary family rents a creepy old house for the summer, and later learns that the place has supernatural forces.

Actress Karen Black and director Dan Curtis reteamed for this spooky ghost story following their great success the year before with the TV thriller TRILOGY OF TERROR. This theatrical release isn't completely up to that triumph, but all in all it's a pretty good chiller, with a terrific cast doing marvellous work. Though she is given surprisingly little to do, Bette Davis does wonders with her role as the tormented aunt. At any rate, this film is a classic compared to THE AMITYVILLE HORROR which came along three years later.